South America Day 23: A Quick Tour of Santiago

I spent most of today flying from the south of Chile to the Ecuadorian capital, Quito. I had a long layover in Chile’s capital, Santiago, so I hired a cooperative taxi driver to show me around the city before I had to embark on the multi-hour journey north to Ecuador.

A friend alerted me last night to the volcanic eruptions in Ecuador; thankfully, it didn’t wind up impacting my flight plans.

The Santiago airport has a lost-luggage sculpture that is reminiscent of the suitcase skewers in Seattle’s airport.

Suitcase Sculpture · Aeropuerto Internacional Arturo Merino Benitez, Santiago, Región Metropolitana, Chile

Here are a few photos and videos from my quick tour of Santiago:

The highlight – and high point of the trip – was the view from Parque Metropolitano in the center of the city. Perched on a hilltop in the center of the city, it offers a panoramic view of the city.

Parque Metropolitano de Santiago, Recoleta, Región Metropolitana, Chile

Parque Metropolitano de Santiago, Recoleta, Región Metropolitana, Chile

I realized as I landed in Ecuador this evening that I most definitely have the travel bug. At some point my life, I have set foot in every state in the US, every province of Canada, and (as of today) 20 other countries.

Quito and Rio share honors for most badly run airports I’ve experienced while in South America. My flight from Santiago landed about an hour later than scheduled, which meant its arrival coincided with two large flights from the US. It took over an hour from walking into the terminal to getting my passport stamped and almost another hour to get my luggage cleared. Given that this all started at 11pm, I was a bit grumpy by the end of the process.